Filter



(No Model.) 4 shets-sneet 1.

JQA. BOWDEN.

FILTER.

No. 559,096. I Patented Apr. 28, 1896.

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(No Model.)

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(No Model.)

J. A. BOWDEN.

FILTER Patented Apr. 28, 1896.

Flq k ANIIREW BGRAHAM, FHDTDUTHQWASHI New" 0 c irnn. STATES JUNIUS A. BOWDEN, or DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

FILTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 559,096, dated April 28, 1896.

Application filed March 9 1891.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JUNIUs A. BownEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Detroit, county of WVayne, State of Michigan, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Filters; and I declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is aperspective view of a filter embodying my invention adapted to be operated by three valves. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a variation in which cleansing-strainers are employed. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the same. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of a variation in which the device substantially as shown in Fig. 2 is provided with washing-strainers. Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4., showing slight variations in the structure and illustrating a surface-wash with means for controlling the same.

It is the purpose of my invention to produce an improved construction of filter, the said improvements consisting, essentially, in the following features: first, the provision of an inverted conical bottom with a filteredwater outlet leading into the same at the lower extremity or apex of the said inverted cone, whereby perfect circulation from the waterinlet to the water-outlet is maintained through all parts of the filter, and whereby, when the said filtered-water conduit is utilized for passing a current of filtered water in the reverse direction through the filter-bed for washing the same, it will lift and agitate the material of the filter-bed along those courses of least resistance, and the adjacent material will settle down and be directed by said inverted conical bottom to the apex of the cone, where it will pass up through the body of and will be caught up and washed, and so on until the filter-bed is thoroughly cleansed; secondly, the provision in a filter, for assisting in washing the same, of a series of depending pipes extending from above the filter-bed down vertically below the surface of the same and terminated at their lower ends with hori- Serial No. 384,280. (No model.)

zontally-slitted noz zles, whereby the washwater may be discharged therefrom in horizontal strata and assist in loosening the bed.

In carrying out my invention, A is the shell or case. B is its inverted conical base.

0 is the filtered-water outlet. D is the water-inlet conduit.

E is the drain-pipe when the current is reversed through the filter for washing the same.

F is a filtered-water-inlet pipe connected with the depending pipes F for use in washing the filtenbed.

O is a horizontal slitted strainer at the inner extremity of the filtered-water-ou'tlet conduit.

F represents similar strainers at the lower extremities of the pipes F.

D, E, F 0 and H are three-way valves.

In Fig. 2 the inverted conical base B and filtered-water outlet 0 are employed in connection with the water-inlet D and drain E.

It is apparent that in the use of this filter the water passing down through the filter-bed will be directed to the apex of the cone from every part of the filter-bed, so that no part of the filter-bed will be subjected to a free current through it while other parts are not so active. The result of this construction is to cause all parts of the filter-bed to act with substantial uniformity. On the other hand, when it is desired to cleanse the filter-bed, filtered water may bereversed through the conduit C. This produces a strong upward flow through the filter-bed, lifting and agitating the mass so that the water will take naturally the course of least resistance; but the filter-bed bearing down upon the inverted conical surface B will be constantly shifted to this apex or lower end of the cone and come under influence of the stream of wash-water. So, also, water entering in this way at the bottom or apex of the cone will at one moment find a path of least resistance in one direction, while by the shifting of the material of the filter-bed this path may be quite different at the next moment, and so by shifting its course, due to this .constant shifting of the filter-bed, the stream is caused to work up through and wash all portions of the filter-bed and drive its impurities to the top of the bed. When thus used to wash either filter-bed, the inlet-water would be turned off from that bed by the three-way valve D (shown in Fig. 1) and the drain-pipe E opened by the threeway valve E, the wash-water being permitted to escape through this passage.

This filter may be made single or it may be made double. If made double, the lower part is constructed in all particulars substantially the same as the upper part, and it is manifest that either part maybe used as a filter, or that either part may be washed independently of the other, or both may be used as a filter by the proper manipulation of the three-way valves.

A filter provided with an inverted conical bottom may rely wholly for washing upon the reverse current through the filtered-wateroutlet pipe, or it may have in. aid thereof an additional washing device consisting of depending pipes F, provided with the strainers, and preferably horizontally-slitted strainers F at the base of each said upright pipe. These depend well down toward the bottom of the filter-bed, and by the three-way valve 0 filtered water from the lower filter may be caused to pass down through said depending pipes and out through said strainers, thus thoroughly agitating the adjacent portions of the filter-bed and washing out its accumulation, and so they will greatly assist the filtered water which may be passed through the conduit C in washing the filter-bed. I would not be limited in the use of these depending pipes to a filter with an inverted conical base, for they may be used with advantage in any kind of a filter. Thus, as shown in Fig. 3, the base of the filter-bed may be a right cone instead of an inverted cone. This construction, how ever, is not so desirable, because filtered water when reversed through the conduit 0 is caused to separate and expend its energy before escaping beneath the base of the cone into the body of the filter-bed and does not, therefore, act so thoroughly to lift and agitate the filterbed, and the flow of water is apt to be at the sides alone, without reaching and cleansing the middle of the bed.

I do not limit myself to any particular construction at the inner end of the conduit 0. There maybe simply a plain open end, or, as shown in Fig. 2, there may be a strainer free upon its inside and with gravel or granular filtering material about its immediate exterior, and be provided with a small deflecting-cone c at its top, or, as shown in Fig. 5, there may be simply a slitted or perforated strainer without the said conical top, or, as shown in Fig. 4:, this conical top may be in the form of an ordinary nozzle G and permit filtered water to pass down only through the said nozzle, thus shielding the strainer beneath from the direct pressure of the filter-bed, and this form might be used to good advantage without the strainer beneath it, since but little of the material of the filter-bed would be apt to drift down through the said small nozzle-openin g. All these constructions are mere variations in the method of arrangement at the inner end of the filtered-water outlet, and any of them might be employed without departing from the spirit of my invention.

The three-way valves may, as shown in the different figures, be provided with indicatingdisks, indicating the effect produced when the valve is turned into any particular posi tion.

In the contrivance shown in Fig. 3 four three-way valves are employed. The valves D and K being both in their open condition and E closed, water would flow up through D into the upper filter and simultaneously into the lower filter, and with the valves 0 and K in proper position filtered water would be drawn off from both and the depending wash-water pipes would be closed, or the valve D may be turned to close the inflow of water. Then by suitably adjusting the valve 0 so as to close off F and to open the passage from the pipe 0 of the upper filter, and opening the valve E to make a free passage to the drain, and also arranging the valve F to leave a free up-and-down passage while the depending pipes F are closed off, by admitting the filtered water through the valve K from any external supply both the lower and upper filters are cleansed and the wash-water will fiow off through E to the drain. So, also, the valves 0 and F may be turned to simultaneously admit water down through the depending pipes F and strainers F in both the lower and upper filter; or by arranging the valve D so as to close off the flow into the upper filter, still maintaining the flow into the lower filter, and closing the valve K, water would enter the lower filter, pass down through the same, thence out and up through the pipe F, and in a reverse direction through the upper filter, and thence out through the drain E, so that water being filtered through the lower section might serve to simultaneously wash the upper section, or by a manifest adjustment of the valves the upper section might be filtering and the water therefrom be made to simultaneously wash the lower section and pass thence to the drain. The arrangement of these valves and conduits will be better understood by examining Fig. 3 in connection with Fig. 3.

In the device shown in Figs. 1 and 2 only three of the three-way valves are employed. In this contrivance water entering the upper and lower filters passes out through the filteredwater conduits C from both filters. Then by adjusting the valve D so as to admit water into the upper filter and cut the flow-off into the lower filter and adjusting the valve 0 Fig. 1, to cut off the outflow through the filtered-water-outlet pipe and leaving the communication free through both the pipes C, it is manifest that water entering the upper filter will pass down through its filterbed and the filtered water therefrom will pass down and enter at the base of the lower filter,

wash its filter-bed, and escape through the drain-pipe E; or, leaving the valve 0 andE in their present position and adjusting the valve D so as to cut off the inflow into the upper filter and maintain a fiow into the lower filter, the water entering the lower filter will pass downward through its filter-bed, and this filtered water will rise and be discharged into the base of the upper filter, will wash its filter-bed, and escape through the drain-pipe E.

What I claim is-- 1. A filter provided with an inverted conical base, with a filtered-water conduit leading from its apex, said conduit provided with a strainer and a supporting-surface immediately above said strainer, said surface pro-.

vided with an ordinary nozzle through which the filtered water may pass when filtering,

and through which the wash-water may enter in a solid stream when washing the filter-bed, substantially as described.

2. In a filter, the combination of an inclined base, a wash-water inlet arranged to permit the inflow of wash-water in a jet extending upward from the bottom of said inclined base, one or more wash-water pipes extending from above the surface of said -filter-bed to, or nearly to, the top of said incline, and arranged 30 to discharge across the said stream of water,

rising upward from said wash-water inlet at the base, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. In a filter, the combination with acasing divided into compartments, one above the other, each compartment having conicalshaped bottoms, conduits leading into the apex of the cones, nozzles on the ends of the conduits, a filter-bed surrounding the nozzles, inlets for both compartments, and valves for the inlet and conduits, substantially as described.

4. In a filter, the combination with a casing divided into compartments, one above the other, each compartment having inverted conical-shaped bottoms, conduits leading into the apex of the cones, nozzles on the ends of the conduits, a filter-bed surrounding the nozzles, inlets for both compartments, valves for the inlet-conduits, and a surface-wash for the filter-bed in each compartment consisting of pipes having lateral discharge-openings, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

JUNIUS A. BOWVDEN. 

